Electronics sector creating large-scale blue-collar jobs for Indian women: Ashwini Vaishnaw

New Delhi, Dec 22 The electronics sector is creating large-scale blue-collar jobs for women in India, said Ashwini Vaishnaw, the Minister for Electronics and Information Technology, on Monday.

He said this, referring to reports on Taiwan-based company Foxconn onboarding nearly 30,000 employees -- nearly 80 per cent women -- at its new iPhone assembly facility in Bengaluru, within just eight to nine months.

In a post on social media platform X, Vaishnaw noted that “a women-led mega factory would have been unimaginable just 10 years ago”.

“Electronics sector continues to create large-scale, skilled, blue-collar jobs, especially for women. Technology transfer, women empowerment, and Ease of Living in full display,” he added.

For its new iPhone assembly facility in Devanahalli, Foxconn has reportedly hired women, most of whom are first-time entrants to the formal workforce, largely in the 19-24 age group.

The trial production at the facility began in April-May this year with the iPhone 16. Currently, the plant is assembling the latest iPhone 17 Pro Max models. Over 80 per cent of the output is destined for export markets.

The Taiwanese contract manufacturing giant is investing approximately Rs 20,000 crore in the project.

With a production floor spanning nearly 250,000 square feet, the facility will also become the company’s largest manufacturing facility in India in terms of both production capacity and employment.

The new facility is also expected to overtake Foxconn’s first iPhone manufacturing plant in Tamil Nadu, which currently employs around 41,000 workers.

In October, Foxconn announced it would invest Rs 15,000 crore in Tamil Nadu, creating 14,000 high-value jobs.

Foxconn currently has operations in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Telangana, and these new plans signal a major expansion of its footprint in India.

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